Overflow began in 2013, inspired by the legendary Momentum, Sub Dub and Jungle Jam nights, but desirous to add their own flavour to the rich Leeds scene. Five years on, and their place at the top of the DnB tree is firmly secured. Overflow have always had an inspired taste in headliners: LTJ Bukem, Hazard, Calibre, Marky, Wilkinson and Roni Size have all guested for them in their half-decade – and the bookings don’t stop there.
To celebrate the milestone, Overflow are doing a special run of three events at Wire in the upcoming months. Emperor, Kasra, Lenzman, FD, Break, Jubei and more are all involved. But before the festivities begin, we asked the crew to look back on their time as promoters so far, as a way of wishing them many happy returns…
What was your wildest party?
“Define ‘wildest’… Would have to be when we had Wire club at capacity and had to sneak in DJ Marky through the fire escape by the DJ booth. The door was left open a tiny bit too long as Marky was being held up signing records (I know right). Just as Marky got into the booth, the fire alarm went off, which cuts all the PA and music completely, and puts the house lights on. Marky’s gaze meets the entirety of a packed, fully lit up Wire Club eagerly waiting his arrival in silence, and everyone roars like it’s a surprise birthday party or something. He just looks at us with the biggest grin and bursts out laughing! And then killed his set as soon as the music came back on of course…”
Who has been your most loveable guest?
“It would probably have to be Luke LSB. We’ve booked him nearly 10 times now since the first ever event back in 2013, and got to know him properly on a personal level. He’s always been so loyal to us, and steals the show more times than we’d like to mention, whether it’s headlining, or playing before or after the headliner… Not to mention Loz Contreras who fathered us from day 1, Rameses B who refuses to ask for guest list and buys a ticket to every single night, and all our incredibly supportive residents.”
Running nights isn’t always a breeze. What has been the worst moment in your Overflow careers?
“It’s definitely had its ups and downs. But it all seems pathetic when the serious stuff happens. When we heard about Marcus Intalex’s passing it was definitely a real shock to all of us. He was a true pioneer, influencer, God Father, flag bearer and forward thinker for the genre, and we owe a hell of a lot to him.
“On a lighter note – it might have to be for Dan, when his girlfriend at the time broke up with him on the same day we did the lowest numbers we’ve ever done on an event in April 2015. We found him in McDonalds staring out the window with a half eaten burger around midnight and had to drag him back to the venue!”
On the flip side, what has been your proudest moment?
“4th birthday with Lenz & Dan Stezo, LSB and Loz Contreras. DRS drops us a text in the week saying he’d like to pop down just to let off some steam on his night off. So sure enough on the night, we sneak him in – full stealth mode, hood fully up. Just as Lenz & Stezo come off the decks, and LSB gets on, out of nowhere the crowd hears on the mic ‘I go by the name of DRS, this is the sounds of the LSB’ – things went f**king mental! ‘The View’ ensues… We later went on to do DRS’s live show later that year, which happened to fall within several days after Intalex’s passing. That was a strange time but it certainly brought people in the scene closer together. An honourable mention would have to be our largest event to date, in October 2014 – Soul:ution with Marky, Lenzman, Intalex, Zero T, Artificial Intelligence, Steo and DRS. That was big turning point for us. It would actually turn out to be the only time Intalex would ever play for us as well, which makes it even more special.”
If you had to pick one track to sum up Overflow, what would it be?
“If it HAS to be just one, then it’s Commix – Painted Smile. This is a kind of unofficial anthem for us. Just when we think it’s had it’s time, it never fails to find it’s way onto the decks (usually in the latter portions of the night..), and it always goes off. It’s been the ‘encore’ / final song of the night more times than any other. The Wire managers have certainly had to put up with it!”
What is next for Overflow?
“We want to keep flying the flag for the sounds of the genre we feel aren’t represented enough in Leeds. With this 5 year mark under our belt for the live events, we will likely look to push on with the label side of things. The response we’ve had so far that has been insane and the quality of the tunes is just stunning. We can’t wait for you all to hear the next release ;)”
Click here to see the 5 Years of Overflow event.